Tiger Woods hurt in car crash at Florida home

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Published 4:00 am, Saturday, November 28, 2009

Photo: Lance Iversen, The Chronicle

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United States Tiger Woods gestures to the galley after sinking a put on 2nd hole to score another point for the Americans over Geoff Ogilvy and Ryo Ishikawa from the International team in the first day of foursome Matches in the 2009 Presidents Cup at Harding Park in San Francisco California Thursday Oct 8, 2009
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United States Tiger Woods gestures to the galley after sinking a put on 2nd hole to score another point for the Americans over Geoff Ogilvy and Ryo Ishikawa from the International team in the first day of ... more

Photo: Lance Iversen, The Chronicle

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A security officer guards the area in front of Tiger Woods house in Windermere, FL where he crashed into a fire hydrant and a neighbor's tree early in the morning Friday, November 27, 2009. (Gary W. Green/Orlando Sentinel/MCT) less

A security officer guards the area in front of Tiger Woods house in Windermere, FL where he crashed into a fire hydrant and a neighbor's tree early in the morning Friday, November 27, 2009. (Gary W. ... more

Photo: Gary W. Green, MCT

Tiger Woods hurt in car crash at Florida home

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Golf legend Tiger Woods suffered minor, but mysterious, injuries early Friday during a car accident in front of his Florida mansion.

Police found Woods lying in the street near his residence, with cuts on his face, Windermere Police Chief Daniel Saylor told the Associated Press. The golfer's wife, Elin Nordegren, was with him as Woods drifted in and out of consciousness, the report said.

Woods drove out of his driveway at 2:25 a.m., police said, and crashed into a fire hydrant and then a neighbor's tree. Nordegren told police she was in their house when she heard the accident, ran outside and used a golf club to shatter the 2009 Cadillac SUV's rear window to help the world's No. 1 golfer out of the vehicle, according to Saylor.

Woods was taken to a hospital, where he was treated and released.

The Florida Highway Patrol said that alcohol did not play a role in the accident but that an investigation into the matter continues and charges are still possible.

Saylor told the Associated Press that officers found the 33-year-old PGA star lying in the street with his wife hovering over him.

"She was frantic, upset," Saylor said in a briefing Friday night. "It was her husband laying on the ground."

Saylor said Woods had cuts to his lips and blood in his mouth. Woods was conscious enough to speak, he said.

"He was mumbling, but didn't say anything coherent," Saylor said.

Questions remain

The question of possible criminal charges is one of many that remain. It is unclear where Woods was heading at that time of the morning or how he managed to lose control of the car so quickly. The characterization of the accident as "minor" is also at odds with the golfer's loss of consciousness. And it is unclear if Woods will be in condition to play in next week's Chevron World Challenge, a tournament he was scheduled to host in Thousand Oaks (Ventura County).

Woods was in the Bay Area in October for the Presidents Cup at Harding Park in San Francisco, which the U.S. team won. He was back just last week, when he attended the Big Game between his alma mater Stanford and UC Berkeley. Woods was Stanford's honorary captain for the game, which the Cardinal lost. Woods presided over the pregame coin toss and suffered the slings of Cal fans who booed him when he was introduced. At halftime, he was inducted into Stanford's sports Hall of Fame.

Resting after trip

Woods then returned to Florida, where he was resting after a two-week trip to China and Australia, during which he won the Australian Masters on Nov. 15.

Friday's accident report was not released until nearly 12 hours after Woods was injured. Patrol spokesman Kim Montes said the accident did not meet the criteria of a serious crash, and the FHP put out a press release only because of inquiries from local media.

Montes said the patrol reports injuries as serious if they require more than minor medical attention.

Air bags in the SUV did not deploy.

Investigators had not had a chance to speak to Woods, but when they do, "We will ask him everything," Montes said. "We just haven't had a chance to do so because he was being medically treated."

Montes said charges could be filed if there was a clear traffic violation.

Saylor said his responding officers did not hear anything about an alleged argument between Woods and his wife.

"Right now we believe this is a traffic crash. We don't believe it is a domestic issue," Montes said.

Exclusive area

Woods' $2.4 million home is part of an exclusive subdivision near Orlando, a community set on an Arnold Palmer-designed golf course and a chain of small lakes. The neighborhood, which is fortified with high brick walls and has its own security force, is home to CEOs and other sports stars such as the NBA's Shaquille O'Neal. Woods lives there with his wife and their two young children.

Woods has won 82 times around the world during his illustrious golf career. That includes 14 major championships - a total second only to Jack Nicklaus' 18.

He won six times this year after missing eight months recovering from reconstructive surgery on his left knee.

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